Akatsuki no Sakura
by Sekhimet
Summary: Sakura has lost her memory and was found by someone unexpected. When she is sent on a mission to massacre Konoha village, she finds something she left behind... and someone... but just how much has her heart changed? Rated for violence and implications.
1. ANBU Thoughts and Cherry Blossoms

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: PG-13 for language (may change due to scenes in later chapters)

Category: Romance/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku, ItaSaku, a little NaruHina

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto ( Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto- sama. I only own two things: the computer I type on, and my love for the Uchiha brothers. -squeezes Itachi and Sasuke plushies- They're hiding now, but I will find them... heheheheh

Chapter One: ANBU Thoughts and Cherry Blossoms

: Sasuke's POV :

She has always annoyed me.

Always, she vied for my affections, ever since we were young. She and that damn Yamanaka woman never left me alone, to give me some space, even after we were placed on the same team with Naruto and Pervert-Kakashi. But she didn't understand that I wanted to be alone; nobody did. Nobody had felt the pain such as I had felt only a few years earlier. Nobody wanted to try to fathom the silent, cold-hearted boy that seemed so distant to the world.

But then, after we fought Zabuza and Haku, she seemed to understand that I wasn't going to pay any attention to her... or any other girl, for that matter. Naruto and I were constantly saving her, and I always thought of her as nothing more than excess baggage, the weakest ninja of our village. I had always wondered whether or not I should save her, or let her annoying ass die.

When we began the Chuunin exams, I had no doubt in my mind that she would help get us through the first section of the exam. Sakura may have been weak, but she was smart. During the Forest of Death section of the exam, however, Sakura was not going to make it through and I knew it. Still, she managed to hold her ground somehow during the attack from Orochimaru, and she held her own against the Sound ninja as well (or so I'm told). When she stopped me from killing them, I knew something wasn't right. That look she gave me was one of pure fear, but for what I had no clue. I still don't know what that look meant. However, we were all able to make it out of Area Nine alive, thanks to Kabuto.

During the preliminary matches, she had tried to stop me from competing, and I responded... quite harshly. However, I felt that she deserved it for nosing in other people's business when she wasn't even wanted around. I didn't realize then that she was already thinking of me as more than a crush. When I had battled against Akado Yoroi and then against Gaara of the Desert, she had watched intently, concentrating fully on the match and hardly blinking.

I know that she had grown during the Chuunin Exams, but it was not enough. I still thought of her as annoying, and I left Konoha behind, and a very upset Sakura tried to stop me. I left anyway. At the time, I didn't know whether or not I cared if I left her standing there, softly crying and broken. When she and Naruto brought me back from the Village of the Sound, and I woke up, I learned she had hardly moved from my hospital bed. I began to have a sort of respect for her and her perseverance.

Together, we have been through very tough times; sometimes she is the only thing that has helped me to maintain my sanity. She helped me to get revenge on Itachi, even though our attempt was unsuccessful and we were both knocked into comas by Itachi's Mengekyou Sharingan. She never fully approved of my lust for power, yet she helped me grow in strength. Though I will never understand how, she managed to make me stronger than I had imagined, on the condition that I would train her to become stronger as well. I had no idea how Sakura- weak, annoying Sakura- would make me, the heir to the legendary Uchiha clan, stronger. With her help, I have managed to become the top ANBU captain in Konohagakure. For some reason, she also joined ANBU, and became top strategist for the ANBU squads. After a year in ANBU, she decided to quit and became a legendary Hunter-nin, proud and powerful. She has been away from the village for three years, three long and eventful years that she has missed so much of. Three years, in which Naruto has fulfilled his dream of becoming the Hokage, Hinata has married Naruto, Ino and Shikamaru have become engaged, and Jiraiya (so he has told me and Naruto) is ready to propose to Tsunade-sama.

Today marks the annual festival celebrating the first day of the cherry blossoms' blooming. To many, it is the sign that spring has arrived. But to Naruto, Kakashi, Hinata and me, it is symbolic, and we look for Sakura in the crowd every time. We do this because, before she left, she said she would return "on the first day that the cherry blossoms begin to fall". She and I had gotten into a fight earlier that day, so I didn't even get so much as a goodbye from her. She told Naruto about when she would return, and he told me. She only expected to be gone for a month or two, not for three years. These past years in the springtime, we have not seen hair nor hide of her. But we keep on searching, even though we dread that one day we will hear that Sakura has finally been defeated- not just knocked out in a battle, but killed in a real, all-out ninja duel that takes place between the missing-nin and the hunter-nin in which only one may survive. Naruto has had no news of Sakura's condition or location since the end of the last summer, and we fear the worst. Many ninja have been sent to search for her, and none have succeeded in finding her. I'm not really surprised though, Sakura has perfect chakra control and can hide it if she doesn't want to be found; however, I see no reason why she would want to hide- unless she has become one of the missing-nin that she had hunted so vigorously in the past. But I doubt that she would have done that.

As I look through the crowd, I see Naruto and Hinata, closely followed by Kakashi and Jiraiya, as well as Tsunade. I guess Naruto had let the news of Sakura's disappearance "slip" to Tsunade and Jiraiya. But I could care less. Now.. I just want to have my flower back. As long as I get to see Sakura first, to catch that sneaky fox of a woman and... never mind. What am I thinking? I've never had any true interest in Sakura before, why should I now?


	2. The Nightshade and the Avenger

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: PG-13 (may change later due to some... scenes...)

Category: Romance/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku, ItaSaku, a little NaruHina

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto so STOP CHASING ME!

Chapter Two: The Nightshade and the Avenger

Sasuke, Naruto, Kakashi, Hinata, Jiraiya and Tsunade searched for a glimpse of Sakura's hair, the exotic cotton candy pink locks that had drawn so many to her, or her eyes of emerald jewels, or some other sign she was there- her black and gray ANBU uniform she still wore even after quitting ANBU itself; her hunter-nin mask she had substituted with the mask of the ANBU uniform; or even her katana, held in its polished black-and-gold sheath.

Sasuke couldn't understand. Had his flower suddenly been cut in battle? Or was something else keeping her away from home? The six shinobi met back in the town square at dusk, and none had seen Sakura. Naruto could tell that Sasuke was worried, even though Sasuke was as stoic as ever. After being around him so much, Naruto could read Sasuke like an open book. Naruto was worried about Sakura as well, but Sasuke was probably the one most affected by her mysterious disappearance. He was more withdrawn, back to his 12-year-old-self.

The six Leaf Ninja were taken to Ichiraku Ramen as a treat from Naruto, and of course Naruto ate more than anybody else. Sasuke only ate about two bowls, as did the other ninja. Sasuke had too many things going on in his mind at once...

:Sasuke's POV:

Sakura... how do I really feel about her? All I ever did was watch her try to win me over, along with the million other fangirls that chased me every day. She was always...there for me though, and helped me through whatever obstacles I had to pass. I couldn't just ignore her absence. What should I do..?

Mystery Akatsuki Member's POV:

"We should be arriving soon," I said to the two black-cloaked Akatsuki patiently awaiting my report. "We will be there in half an hours' time if we walk, and probably five minutes if we run the whole way." "Excellent, is my brother there?" The one on the right peered at me with his blood-red Sharingan eyes. "Yes, Itachi-sensei, he is at the ramen stand with five others," I say, trying to avoid eye contact with him. Every time I look at those eyes, I feel light-headed and I always faint, much to my disdain. Itachi-sensei said before that he wasn't surprised, many had fallen to the spell of his Sharingan and had died because of it. At least I had learned to resist it to the point where I didn't faint immediately. He had told me there were only two others in the whole world that had the Sharingan; his younger brother Uchiha Sasuke and the famous (infamous? Depends on how you look at it) Copy Ninja, Hatake Kakashi. Itachi-sensei only seems truly interested in Sasuke, but I am intrigued by the both of them. The Hokage interests me as well, for he has the legendary Kyubi sealed within him. If any one of them are anything like Itachi-sensei, I would love to be able to defeat them in battle.

As I reminisce, Itachi-sensei and Kisame-sensei stare at me. I think that Itachi-sensei is listening to my thoughts because he just smirked. "We ought to get going now, blossom," he says, breaking me out of my thoughts. I nod and turn to face the Hidden Village of Leaf. "Remember, this is only to test your power as my student, and to test my younger brother," he said. "The Leaf ninja are a force to be reckoned with, in your case. Be careful, I do not want to have to save you again." The memory of the incident at the Sand Village is still fresh on my mind, and apparently on his and Kisame- sensei's as well. I had run into that bloody Sand Shukaku, Gaara, and he almost managed to kill me (I know, I know, Gaara is dead, but pretend he was alive in this, okay?). He would have, had Itachi-sensei not intervened and killed the Shukaku himself. He and Kisame-sensei were doing the Sand Village a favor by ridding them of Gaara, for Gaara would ravenously prey upon the villagers whenever his appetite got worked up. Itachi-sensei saw this as an opportunity to test my strength, but I was still not strong enough. He had been watching me and seen my fatal mistake in battle- I had carelessly let fly a fire jutsu in the wrong direction, leaving me wide open, and Gaara took this opportunity to try to crush me with the sand. As punishment for this incredibly amateur blunder, I had to endure a week straight of rigorous training, with no sleep and no meals. Fortunately, Kisame-sensei was somewhat sympathetic and sneaked me a bit of food and some extra water from time to time. When I was finally finished and completely exhausted, Itachi-sensei kindly allowed me to rest and relax for a whole day. After that, I reassumed my regular, intensive training routine and Itachi-sensei and Kisame-sensei harshly drove me to finish my goals. I didn't care though, they had made me stronger, and they had rescued me countless times. I'll never forget when we first met...

It was a snowy, windy day and I was wandering in the forest, half frozen and delirious. All I knew about myself was my name and my age. I hardly even knew which way was which, until finally I gave up and rested against a tree, trying to clear my head. And that's when he came.

He had his usual black Akatsuki cloak on, and had a straw hat on to help hide his identity. He saw me against the tree trunk, and asked me my name. When I gave it to him, he looked as though he were scrutinizing me, the pitiful 15-year-old leaning against the tree. He gave a whistle, low and soft, and another black-cloaked Akatsuki appeared behind him, also with a straw hat on and a large sword strapped to his back. I gawked; I knew nothing of chakra back then but even so, I could feel the raw power that emanated from those two. Then Itachi-sensei (I didn't know him at the time, of course) looked straight at me and I raised my eyes to his. I was immediately knocked out, but that was before I could withstand the power of his Sharingan eyes. When I woke up, I was laying in some blankets in a little cave, next to a fire. Itachi-sensei introduced himself and Kisame- sensei, and then told me to close my eyes. He crouched near me to get a look at my face, silently sizing me up. "Do you know what a ninja is?" he asked me. When I shook my head, he said, "I know how to make you powerful... I have been waiting for a student to come along, one that knew nothing of my identity. You show all the signs of one who wishes to be someone other then yourself, and I can do that for you. Would you like that?" I nodded my head vigorously. "Good, we can travel to our base and we can start your training there. It seems to me that we will have to start from the beginning, but I have a feeling you will catch on quickly."

He was right. In a matter of just a few months, I was able to defeat every ninja that I met that was in the Chuunin level. Next, I began training twice as hard and was soon able to defeat Jounin. I began to spar with my two senseis, and I was able to defeat Kisame-sensei on my third try. I have not yet, however, been able to defeat Itachi-sensei, and I greatly respect him for that. I still respect Kisame-sensei, of course. Of the two of them, he has probably been the kindest to me throughout my training. Itachi-sensei has trained me in every jutsu he knows that does not involve the Sharingan -even that much has given me a wide arsenal of techniques to use- and in summonings and scrolls. Kisame-sensei has trained me in weapons and taijutsu, thus making me now one of the toughest ninja of my generation (or so I've been told by Itachi-sensei, much to my embarrassment). I owe Itachi-sensei so much, and now I need to prove that I have changed, and I can follow in his footsteps. I am no longer a delicate little cherry blossom, I am now a poisonous nightshade flower. Advanced bloodline or not, I will defeat the ninja of Leaf- including the Hokage- and prove that I am strong now. Itachi-sensei has already informed me of my initial role as bait to lure Sasuke, and to make him angry enough to use his Sharingan- even though it made me blush when he told me exactly how we would get Sasuke that mad. After that, while he battles Sasuke, I am to take care of the Hokage and the other ninja, including the hunter-nin and the ANBU.

My fingers are twitching with anxiety. Throughout these past three years, Itachi-sensei and Kisame-sensei have taught me to be like them – filled with the battle spirit and a lust for bloodshed and pain. Whether it be dishing it out or taking it myself, pain is my adrenaline, my natural high. I push my long braid over my shoulder so that it rests on my back, ignoring the fact that my bangs tickle my face as I do so. I lick my lips at the thought of so much death and blood, all to be shed by my hands. Apparently Itachi-sensei noticed and smirks again. "Let's go, my little blossom," he says, dashing off in the direction of the Leaf Village. He and Kisame-sensei slow to a stop about ten meters from the town to get in their positions, while I go ahead to lure Sasuke into the forest.

Sasuke and Naruto finished their ramen and decided to walk around town. They wandered around, scrutinizing every object in their sight. Then something caught Sasuke's eye. "There!" he shouted, running off in the direction where he had seen the flash of pink. Naruto whirled around and quickly followed him. 'Sakura-chan! I'm coming!' Naruto thought. The chase led them past the ramen stand, where Kakashi noticed them whizzing past. Knowing that there was only one thing that could get both of them worked up like that, he dropped his chopsticks, shoved his Come Come Paradise into his pack, and chased after them. Hinata, Jiraiya and Tsunade quickly followed suit, realizing suddenly what must be happening.

'Dammit, Sakura, stop playing and just stop already!' Sasuke thought, as he followed the petal-haired figure into the woods, closely followed by the other five ninja. He heard a loud whistle coming from up ahead, then grabbed onto a brach to swing himself up and dodge the kunai that would have otherwise hit a critical point on his body. The other ninja had their own means of dodging it, Naruto landing somewhat clumsily on his leg. Sasuke and the others jumped to the ground and stepped into a clearing. The young Uchiha frowned. 'Where the hell is she?' he wondered. Almost as an answer to his question, he saw a figure appear in front of him, but it was not who he expected. He drew in a sharp breath as his hand went to his kunai pouch. "Itachi..." he hissed.

"Tsk, tsk, Sasuke, I would think you would have better manners than that after not seeing me in three years." Itachi wagged his finger mockingly at Sasuke. Smirking, he snapped his fingers and two more figures appeared. The first was Kisame, Sasuke had expected that. The second was another ninja, dressed in the Akatsuki uniform, also with a sword crossed over their back – it was not a Claymore like Kisame's, but rather the long, slender blade of a katana. Seeing Sasuke's obvious confusion, as well as Naruto and the others looking curiously at the third member of his team, Itachi motioned to the third person. The person slowly walked over to Itachi, almost as if they were afraid, and slowly unzipped their Akatsuki jacket, removed the sleeve from one arm and then removed their straw traveling hat. Sasuke, Naruto, Kakashi, Hinata, Tsunade and Jiraiya all gasped in surprise to see an 18-year-old Sakura press against Itachi's back, then close her eyes as his hand came up to play with her petal- colored braid. As she wrapped her arms loosely around Itachi's neck, Sasuke growled. "What did you do to Sakura!" he demanded, as the others fell back into fighting stances. His eyes began to change color, from onyx to bright red, with the trademark extra pupils of the Sharingan. Kakashi raised his headband up to reveal a Sharingan of his own. Sakura moved away from Itachi and flashed a sardonic grin. "So you're Copy Ninja Hatake Kakashi... and you must be..." she turned to Sasuke. "... Uchiha Sasuke, Itachi-sensei's younger brother, correct?" Sasuke gaped in disbelief, as did the other ninja. What had happened to Sakura? Why was she acting like she had no past relations to them? Naruto ran up and stopped next to Sasuke. Sasuke glared at Itachi. "What is all this Itachi-sensei crap about?" he said, looking straight into his brother's Sharingan eyes. The corners of Itachi's mouth curved into a hint of a sinister smile. "Just what it sounds like. I have trained this little blossom myself, and now she has become a powerful... not to mention curvatious..." (here Sasuke turned red) "... and attractive young kunoichi," he finished, waiting to see the Leaf ninja's reactions. Sasuke just glared, but was very red in the face, and Kakashi narrowed his eyes at Sakura, trying to understand what had happened to her. Hinata looked sadly at Sakura, her first real friend, then glanced at Naruto; Jiraiya was trying his best to look serious, but was failing badly due to the fact that he took one look at Sakura and her body-hugging uniform under her unzipped cloak and spouted a nosebleed, try as he might to stop it. Tsunade looked at the once-innocent girl she had known, who had done so much for the Leaf Village at one time, and asked herself why she had to send Sakura on that last mission- then looked at Jiraiya with his bleeding nose and rolled her eyes. Naruto simply stared helplessly at the powerful kunoichi in front of him and took a step forward. Sakura shot her gaze over to him.

"Sakura-chan, what happened? Just tell us, and we'll try to figure out how to get the villagers to understand... we just want you to come back home... Sakura-chan, please..." he pleaded, looking at her with his beautiful cerulean eyes. Sakura looked at him coldly with empty emerald eyes. "... You are the Hokage, right?" she said, looking him up and down. His coat, which had once been worn by the Yondaime, made him look uncannily like the Fourth Hokage himself- however, nothing stirred in Sakura's mind. Then suddenly she licked her lips. "You are the one with that damn Kyubi sealed inside of you, are you not? I don't know who you think you are and how the hell you know me..." Naruto looked at Sakura, shocked. Her emerald eyes had suddenly come to life, dancing like bottle-green fire and looking hungrily at Naruto, a sadistic smirk on her icy visage. "... but one thing is for certain..." she unsheathed her katana and threw off her Akatsuki jacket, revealing the slightly muscular, slender body of a fighter. "... I will defeat you and I will savor every moment of your demise!"

Sekhimet: O.O Sakura's scary, isn't she? I was trying to make her stronger and less helpless than she is in the manga, but still with a hint of the old Sakura- remember Itachi had to save her from Gaara? Anyway, the next chapter is going to be really violent, and it will be my first time writing a battle scene, so please don't hurt me... I won't nag you to review like some authors do, but a review would be greatly appreciated. As for SasuSaku fans, don't worry, your time will come! The same for ItaSaku fans... but not in the next chapter! Maybe the one after that... WARNING: There will also be slight NaruSaku next chappie! thunder booms Also, any ideas would be appreciated! I'll try to put as many of them as possible into the story, but I can't promise anything...


	3. Bloodlust

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: PG-13 for language, sexual implications (later on) and graphic violence

Category: Romance/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku, ItaSaku, a little NaruHina

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Happy?

Chapter Three: Bloodlust

: Sakura's POV:

This will be good fun.  
As my bloodlust slowly consumes my body, I wonder why there was something familiar about the Leaf Ninja that stood before me. They are unknowing that I am ready and willing to slowly tear them apart, to torture them until their souls are released from their bodies, when I shall perform the jutsu that will shatter their souls, their life force. Yet some part of me is pulling at me not to allow myself to destroy them yet, I don't know why but I kind of agree with it...

The Hokage is looking at me strangely... his eyes are beautiful. Something in them tells me he wants to avoid fighting me at all costs, but it does not matter. I have become too much like my mentors, and I have been like them for too long. Whether or not he will fight me is his decision. I will still kill them either way.

My blade was sharpened just last night, ready for the battle. By tonight it will be blunt again because of all the steel it will cut through to get to the body underneath the armor. Either way, if I can prove to Itachi-sensei that I can massacre a village all by myself, then he might even regard me as his equal. He already acknowledges the fact that I'm stronger than Kisame-sensei. I can hear the praise he will give me already...

I grin. This will be an awesome battle, one between the Hokage and a mere missing-nin. But this missing-nin will not settle for defeat. If I must, I will tear his body to shreds with my bare hands. And who the hell are the others that seem to know me as well? This girl with the sad white eyes... why is she looking at me like that? For some reason, I don't want to kill her now. The woman with the blonde hair, one of the Sennin, let me see... Tsunade? Yes, that was it. She seemed to be looking at me but very deep in thought as well. Hatake Kakashi seems familiar to me... his silver hair seems very odd. I snicker. He has one of the weirdest hairstyles I have ever seen. And that... old man... in the back, with the bleeding nose, he is also a Sennin. That must be Jiraiya; Orochimaru made up the last of the Sennin and he was long dead. I had heard about Jiraiya; not only was he rumored to be the strongest Sennin, he had trained the Fourth and Sixth Hokages, whereas the Fifth Hokage was Tsunade only because Jiraiya had refused the title. And Itachi-sensei... well he seems to be having a glaring contest with his younger brother. Hmph. How I would love to cut that beautiful Uchiha's body and feel his blood run through my hands... but that was Itachi-sensei's privilege. I know that interference with their battle will only lead to severe punishment after today. Those two pairs of Sharingan eyes... they are scary and powerful, but also graceful and beautiful, in a weird way...

I snap out of my musings. This is not the time to hesitate! But the Hokage's eyes... damn him. Why do those eyes have to be so calm and beautiful? The only way to stop them from staring at me will be to still them forever.

Suddenly I rush towards the Hokage, katana drawn, ready to begin my fierce battle. As strong as I may be, I cannot forget that Kage is the highest ninja rank there is, rivaled only by the other Kage's powers. This is the reason that I must not underestimate him, beautiful eyes or not.

He disappears suddenly, and I spin around to block his attack from behind. The other four ninja join the battle, so I run deeper into the forest, to give Itachi-sensei room to fight his own battle. I run, dodging kunai swiftly, but this is no problem after what Itachi-sensei and Kisame- sensei have put me through. Even though there are five ninja on my trail, swiftly throwing kunai and shuriken left and right, I am able to dodge every attack. My hard work is finally paying off. Leaping into a clearing, I quickly pull a Henge no Jutsu and transform into a leaf, hiding my chakra so I can't be sensed. Itachi-sensei had said before that they thought that I was a weak ninja, so to use small jutsus at first. As the Hokage and the others look around frantically, I wait so that my timing will be perfect. Unfortunately, as I transform quickly into my normal self and get ready to decapitate the Hokage, who is next to me, my timing is not perfect enough. The girl with the strange white eyes sees me first. "Naruto!" she shouts, frantically trying to get in the way of my slash to take the hit herself. Foolish girl! I miss my target on purpose just to get her out of the way. I change my stroke from straight across at the Hokage's neck height to downward across the girls' chest. She lets out a sharp "Oh!" and crumples to the ground. "HINATA!" The Hokage runs over to her limp body and disappears before I can plunge my sword into his chest. So, his name is Naruto, I think. Heh. And her name is Hinata...

The other three ninja rush at me. I easily dodge their attacks, leaping swiftly in the air. I land in a tree, then perform the Henge no Jutsu again and transform into a sparrow. I hide my chakra yet again. Any shinobi should be able to know how this battle tactic works. Even if the ninja only knows the most basic of skills, the Henge no Jutsu, if they hide their chakra well enough, they can be easily transformed into deadly assasins.

I sit in the tree nearest Naruto and Hinata, watching them. Naruto looks as if he's crying. Crying! Dear Lord, now that is pathetic. I listen to what Hinata was saying to him, but I can't understand what she means.

"N...Naru...to... she doesn't know... she doesn't understand... she wouldn't do this, not... not the Sakura I know... she must have lost her memory, Naruto... get it back for her... for me... I don't want you to be mad at her... I will keep watching over you, Naruto, so you had better promise..." Here she gave a weak grin. "Promise me that you will get her memory back... you don't need to punish her, she will punish herself for what she has done... Naruto..." Naruto kept crying softly. "Hinata, don't go, don't leave me..." "Naruto.. listen to me.." she said, her voice weak but commanding. "When this is over... go help Sakura, she will need it. And keep looking for miracles, Naruto... they're out there... I already found one..." And with that she closed her eyes, as I felt her chakra ebb away. Her blood was everywhere, over Naruto, the ground, and spattered around the trees near where I had slashed her. The gash in her chest was excruciatingly deep, and no human could have lived through that. I feel something tug at my chest, but I ignore it. No time to think. I have a test to pass...

I fly towards Kakashi. Heh, he is so clueless. He has no idea that he will feel pain beyond whatever he has felt before. Just as I fly over him, I perform the Henge no Jutsu again and land on top of him, driving my katana down through his right shoulder. He manages to reach up and throws me off of him, flipping me onto my back and spraining my ankle. Clever, I think. He timed the throw and used just the right movements and amount of force to twist my ankle. I quickly perform the seals to heal my ankle immediately, a medical skill that Itachi-sensei taught me. As I do so, Kakashi reaches up with his left hand and pulls my katana out of his shoulder, throwing it down to the ground. His blood is all over him and me, and I realize that this seems familiar. Itachi-sensei had warned me that this is what would have cost Zabuza-san his life when he battled Kakashi six years ago. Kakashi had allowed Zabuza to strike him enough to get his blood all over Zabuza's clothes, then used a summoning scroll to bring forth ninja tracking dogs. After he had immobilized Zabuza, he performed his own jutsu, Chidori, which was blocked by Haku-san; Kakashi's hand went straight through his heart and killed him, of course. I realize that this is what he must be planning, so I simply take out my kodachi and perform the seals for a jutsu with one hand. My chakra flows to my right hand, the one with the kodachi in it, and I make a slashing motion. Kakashi is in too much pain to be able to react fast enough. The chakra flies through the air like a blade, and slices all of his scrolls, summoning and otherwise, in half; it then sliced through the rest of his clothes and cut a gash into his chest, where his heart would be. Then I run to him and leap into the air. Landing behind him, I spin around and thrust my kodachi through his hand, destroying the summoning mark there. He has just lost all means of any summoning whatsoever. I smirk. Haku-san, though I did not know him, had learned his senbon skills from Itachi-sensei, which were later passed to me. I swiftly took out three senbon and thrust them into three pressure points, leaving Kakashi limp and immobile. As he slumps to the ground, I say "I will finish you later, but right now I have other pests to deal with..."

Three ninja left. Tsunade and Jiraiya rush at me, performing their own summoning techniques. Hah, I think, simple-minded idiots. As two huge figures loom in front of me, Gama-bunta and the Katsuyuu, I grin. "Useless!" I leap forward and perform the seals for one of Itachi- sensei's fire jutsus. "Katon, Housenka no Jutsu!" I shout, as a great flame shoots from my mouth towards the two summons. It splits up into more flames, also very large, in which I had hidden Fuuma Shuriken. Gama-bunta easily dodges it, but the slug and Tsunade are less fortunate. The slug tries to block it with a water jutsu, and it is partially successful; however, the Fuuma Shuriken were thrown with a lot of power behind them, so they pass through the water shield unabated. They lodge themselves into the soft body of the slug, and one hits Tsunade full in the stomach. As the summon disappears, Tsunade falls and Jiraiya and Gama-bunta rush to catch her. Two ninja left. I am surprised at myself actually; three powerful ninja down and hardly a scratch on me, and I am barely beginning to tap into my chakra.

Jiraiya is pissed, I can tell. He is so easy to read, it is quite humorous actually. I laugh. "You look like such a fool, Sennin," I say, looking at his red face. Then I noticed his nosebleed. I feel the blood rush to my cheeks, and I take out a scroll. "Pervert! You're going to pay!" I quickly slice open my hand and spread my blood on the scroll. I then let it roll closed and snap into place, and I grab it and perform the seals. I keep a careful eye on Jiraiya because Itachi-sensei said it was dangerous to put all your focus away from your opponent. He's not moving though, I think he wants to wait and see what I summon. Heh, poor fool, I think, as I finish the last seal and push my hand to the ground. What he doesn't know is that this is no ordinary summoning jutsu, it is a jutsu that fuses the summon with the ninja. As I am engulfed in smoke, I focus my chakra to speed up the fusion. Jiraiya could take this opportunity to attack me from behind.

I can feel the power of the summon rush through my body like adrenaline. Then, slowly, I begin to change shape. My hands are weapons now, as the fingernails turn into claws. I feel my teeth lengthening and sharpening in my mouth, and my canines protrude from my mouth now. I feel my eyes narrow and my braid turns crimson. My nose is becoming super sensitive to my surroundings, and I feel my eyesight dimming. This is the only defect this summon has; it is blind. However, all my other senses are boosted incredibly, and I can feel my muscles tense up. My voice changes into that of a spirit, or rather, of several. My wolf instincts begin to kick in. Yes, my summon was a wolf, and a very ancient one at that. But this doesn't mean she moves like a 1,000 year old creature, no, she moves as swiftly and gracefully as the wind. I grin darkly, there is no way Jiraiya can defeat me now.

I swiftly leap straight into the air to dodge the rain of kunai sent by Jiraiya through the smoke. I land on a branch, then swing down, and launch myself off the side of the trunk. I miss him, but I land on another branch to attack from behind. I launch off of this one as well, and I ram into Jiraiya full-on, knocking him off of Gama-bunta. As we fall, with me on top, I pull him closer. Just before we hit, I push him forward with my arms and push off of him at the same time. He is slammed into the ground with a sickening CRUNCH, and I flip in the air to land gracefully on my feet. As the smoke clears, I walk to where Jiraiya lay, moaning and gritting his teeth in pain. He loses consciousness, and I bend forward and move him gently onto his side a bit. He cries out, and I grin. "So, you old pervert, this is what you get for interfering, and for looking at me like that... all you got in the end was a broken back."

I turn to see Naruto finally stand up, his fists clenched, his head bowed. "Sakura-chan..." he says, fury in his every word. I look at him curiosly. "You killed my wife... you rammed Jiraiya into the ground and broke his back... you almost murdered Tsunade... and you have incapacitated your sensei! I cannot forgive you, not yet!" I growl, and my lips curve into a snarl. "Sensei?" I spat, disgusted. "Itachi is my sensei, do I have to write it on your forehead? That weakling Kakashi was never my sensei, nor will he ever be!" Naruto laughs coldly at me. "You really have lost your memory, haven't you, Sakura-chan?" he says. "You were a ninja before Itachi ever found you; Kakashi was your sensei, and Sasuke and I were your teammates!" I take a step back and my summon suddenly leaves me, leaving my chakra almost exhausted. It takes a lot to fuse with a summon, and to maintain that fusion. "I... no... you're lying!" I shriek, glaring at him. "Liar! Itachi-sensei and Kisame-sensei are my only teachers!" Naruto looks at me, his eyes suddenly sad. Goddammit, those eyes again... they are so gorgeous. No, no! I can't think that! I have to kill him, fight, prove my strength! "You want proof? Here it is." He holds up a little square of paper. "What is that?" I say, as I cautiously edge forward to get a better look at it. I gasp. "That.. that girl.. that can't be me!" But deep down I know it is me, in a group portrait with two boys, one with blonde hair and the other with black hair, and a man standing over us, his one visible eye closed in a smile. I begin to step backwards. "No! I am Itachi-sensei's student, he is my teacher, he is my whole life!" Naruto snaps his head up to look at my eyes when I say those last words. My hand claps over my mouth. Oh, my god, did I really say that! I can feel the heat rise furiously into my cheeks again. "No..."

I slump to the ground, my hands pressed against the ground, my eyes wide open. I am breathing hard, my chakra is too weak, I can't keep my eyes open...


	4. Akatsuki's Mirage

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: PG-13 for language, sexual implications (later on) and graphic violence

Category: Romance/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku, ItaSaku, a little NaruHina

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. All I own are this computer,my music andmy AMVs... YAY

Chapter Four: Akatsuki's Mirage

As Sakura and the others went off to some other section of the forest, Sasuke was left with Kisame and Itachi. Sasuke's Sharingan now had the three pupils that Itachi's had, but he had not acheived the Mangekyou Sharingan yet, as he had long ago abandoned his plan to kill Naruto to acheive it. So here it was, Sasuke's second chance to avenge his clan, and he was not about to lose it. His brother was as calm as ever, and his face was still and emotionless, save a little smirk he still held from when Sakura was still next to him. Itachi was ready for him, he had a few of those Uchiha controlled wires up his sleeves, not to mention several dozen kunai.

Sasuke swiftly unsheathed his katana, and rushed at Itachi. Itachi closed his eyes and easily dodged the attack, but Sasuke wasn't headed for him. He spun around in time to see Sasuke leap in the air and plunge his beautiful, silver blade into Kisame's chest, despite the shark-nin's efforts to block him. Kisame was powerful, but slow, and it cost him dearly for not training in speed as much as in aim and power. Sasuke fiercely pulled back his blade, making Kisame's limp body lurch forward with its momentum. He wheeled around and swept his sword at Itachi's waist. Itachi easily dodged it, but his mind suddenly took a dangerous turn. Itachi couldn't help but notice that this was very much like one of his recent sparring matches with Sakura, and he remembered very well the way she swept at his waist with a roundhouse kick, and the way her body curved in a graceful arc to avoid his sweep kick counterattack to her face. They had been sparring in the hot springs, so each of them only had a towel on, and one of the main objects of the match was to keep your towel on and get the other's towel off (of course Itachi came up with this, naughty naughty Itachi!). He was so distracted in the thought of Sakura when he knocked her into the water and got her towel off, he didn't notice that Sasuke had swung up with his scabbard as Itachi was in the air. He quickly flipped backwards and narrowly avoided being hit in the ribs with a scabbard. Sasuke smirked at his older brother's antics.

"Going soft, are we, Itachi?" Sasuke hissed the words coldly, but Itachi didn't flinch. It was the same tone he himself had used so many times- most often with Sakura, for she was the only one that lived when he spoke to her like that. If he had spoken with that venemous hiss to anybody else, they would have been dead within the blink of an eye. Itachi simply smirked at him.

"No, I was merely reminded of someone with that last move of yours. Quite pitiful, Sasuke, that was too easy to see." Sasuke glared at him with his blood-colored Sharingan.

"Then why did I almost hit you?" Itachi closed his eyes and his smirk widened. Sasuke began to slowly step towards his brother, sword held in position, ready to flash through the air like lightning.

"Simply because I was thinking about that little kunoichi. She's mine now, Sasuke, face it. She might have been yours, once, but you refused her. I've seen her buried memories, and you had hurt her beyond your comprehension. Oh yes," he added, opening his eyes and looking Sasuke straight in the eyes. "It had been more than just a foolish crush, Sasuke, that girl actually cared for you, more than anything else. Why else would she have argued with you that day?" Sasuke's step faltered and he stopped. Itachi's smirk lessened a little as Sasuke became deathly serious, with a voice that could freeze Hell over.

"Sakura is not yours. She never was yours to begin with, and no, she was not mine either. I knew what I was doing to her, and I thought I enjoyed it- the thought of her crying at home because I had rejected her again and again replaced my memories of you, so I kept on killing her slowly, and it helped a little. I became addicted to her pain and sorrow, and I would listen to her sobs every night and I loved it. It helped me bury my own thoughts and violent fantasies... but she became more than just a drug I could addict myself to. That day that she left, I was trying to get her to cry for me again, but I think..." Sasuke's eyes darkened and he lowered his head. Itachi tilted his head in mock curiosity as that oh-so-lovable smirk returned. "You think...?" he taunted, waiting to hear Sasuke's answer. Maybe he could use it against him...

Sasuke's hand began to glow a faint blue, as his Chakra left his body and formed around his hand. "I think I was just trying to keep Sakura for myself a little longer, so that I could tell her why I had done what I did and apologize for it all." His Chakra grew fast, so that it looked like lightning. This was part of what Sakura had taught him... how to focus his Chakra and mold it so that he didn't need to perform seals. "But you..." Sasuke's voice grew more feral, and far more angry. His head slowly lifted to look at Itachi, who was no longer smirking.

"You stole her away from me!" Sasuke rushed at his brother, the Chidori growing bigger and bigger until it engulfed his whole body. Itachi managed to dodge Sasuke's assault of claw-thrusts, but his Chakra was wearing down fast, and he couldn't figure out why. It was then that he realized that Sasuke had developed his Chidori far beyond Kakashi's level... he had modified it so that it absorbed the enemy's Chakra and added to his own. Itachi was actually worried; he had never faced an opponent of this calibre, except for Sakura. She had a few original Chakra-absorbing jutsus of her own, but he had learned over time how to block them out and guard his Chakra, but against Sasuke's new Chidori... he wouldn't last long. Itachi gritted his teeth as he gathered his remaining Chakra into his palm Rasengan-style for his Naien Gyakushuu, and ran towards Sasuke as Sasuke ran towards him. Sasuke aimed his Chidori for Itachi's chest while Itachi aimed for Sasuke's stomach. Both attacks connected at full force with their targets, blowing the two Uchiha away from each other.

Both men hit the ground hard, the only things that stopped them form skidding further away were the trees that they eventually slammed into. Itachi managed to pull himself into a sitting position, breathing heavily, clutching his chest. Already he could feel the blood slowly filling his lungs, and he didn't have anough Chakra left to perform any medical jutsus on himself.. he would just have to wait until Sakura came back, or the ANBU found him.

Several yards away from Itachi, Sasuke lay on the ground, fighting to stay conscious. He did manage to say something before he passed out, though.

"Come back, Sakura..."

Naien Gyakushuu- obviously something I came up with. It literally means "Inner flame counterattack"

Sekhimet: I am SOO SORRY I haven't updated in so long! -bows- I was waiting for my other computer that actually has the chapters all written out, but since I got such wonderful reviews, I decided to just start over. -sigh- but thank you for waiting so patiently! I really appreciate it! Oh, I forgot to answer your reviews...

**kai013:** Thanks! You're my first reviewer! -hug-

**pocky no miko:** I LOVE YOUR STORIES! I AM SOO GLAD THAT YOU REVIEWED MINE! -glomp- Definately! Itachi/Sakura LIVES ON!

**x Lindsay x: **She does kick ass, doesn't she? I love the new Sakura. As for being forgiven, you'll see... the good and the bad are coming up!

**chisio no hime:** YAY I'm so glad you like it! This is my first fic ever, so.. enjoy!

**Scarred Marrionett:** interesting? You think so?

**emir:** Well, I finally updated! have fun! I'll try to update again soon...

**little haruno sakura:** thank you! i actually am beginning to like where this is going...

**xx-Tsumi-chan-xx:** You likie the fight scene? I hope so! Yeah, poor Hinata...

**sesshomaruwuzhere: **Wow, you're actually celebrating her death? Okay... oh and sorry but I know for a fact that the slug's name isn't Gamakichi, because Gamakichi is the name of Gamabunta's (Boss Toad's) son. Yes I know Naruto is a guy, he just has pretty eyes. Those yaoi fanfictions do make him too girly. Ick. Well, if you like Sasuke and Sakura that much, this is mainly ItaSaku but it has a LOT of SasuSaku in it.

Thanks again to all my readers! I really appreciate the reviews! Oh and if you have any suggestions for the story, let me know and I'll try to put it in. If you guys like ItaSaku, keep on reading. It's coming to ya.. and when it does, it's going to be MAJOR! SasuSaku fans... also coming up! There will be a tasty chunk of SasuSaku to complement the ItaSaku, so happy reading! NaruSaku fans... just let me know how you want this pairing to fit in, I'll try to work it in there- I'm very flexible and open to feedback, so go ahead and let me know if you want to see something in the story, okay? Until next time, owari!


	5. Realization Part I

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: R for violence, sexual implications and strong language in later chapters

Category: Romace/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku, ItaSaku, a little NaruHina

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto…. shaddup and leave me be...

Oh yeah, Kisame isn't dead. Sorry to all you Kisame-haters out there.

Chapter Five: Realization Part I

: Sakura's POV:

I slowly open my eyes to see Naruto standing over me. I think I had passed out.

I don't understand. Why is he so familiar to me? His cerulean eyes, his blonde hair, his soft features… all seem strange, yet I know them and they are comforting to look at. His voice, which was loud before, was gentle and reassuring when he talked to me last. Why can't I understand what he's saying now though? I know that he's talking, his lips are moving… but no sound is coming out. Then I notice that the birds, the animals, the trees and the earth are silent as well. Oh no, I realize, it's me. It's not the forest that is silent, it is me that can't hear. I sit up quickly. Naruto steps back a bit and cautiously watches me as I put my hand to my ear. As I remove my hand, I already know what is covering my palm, so I don't gasp or anything like that. I just stare at the blood that covers my hands, and wipe away the blood that gushes from my ears.

Naruto bends down and takes my bloodied hand. Suddenly, I notice that there is a soft reddish-orange light coming from his hand. _So, Naruto's chakra was orange_. At first, there is nothing. Then a blinding pain shoots through my head and I cry aloud. As fast as it came, it disappears, and I feel a little revived. My hearing has been restored, for I can hear the birds in the forest.

As I try to stand, Naruto releases my hand to see if I can walk on my own. As soon as I am sure that I can, I walk in the opposite direction towards Itachi-sensei. I need him now, and I was too weak to accomplish the mission he gave me. Naruto stays to tend to his three companions' wounds.

As I stagger into the clearing, I notice that Sasuke is indeed lying on the ground, unconscious at least, but Itachi-sensei doesn't look good at all. I half run, half stumble over to him and crouch next to him. He is clutching his chest and his breathing is labored. His blood, and the blood of his brother, is everywhere. I try to gently move his hand so I can see the wound, but he sharply grabs my wrist with his other hand. His gaze remains low, but I can feel him tense up.

"No, Sakura," he commands. His voice is hoarse and his grip is weaker than usual. His body lurches and he vomits blood, but he keeps his hold on my wrist. "My brother was much stronger than I thought. Kisame was knocked out from one blow of Sasuke's sword, and that was expected. But I didn't think he would be this strong…" His voice trails off, and he releases my wrist. His now-free hand moves back to the ground to support himself, but I already have that covered. I crawl in front of him and pull him onto my lap, with surprisingly little resistance.

"Itachi-sensei…" I whisper, stroking his hair with one hand and holding him to me with the other. I suddenly realize that his hair is loose and his headband is missing. I look around to see where it is, and I notice a gleam a ways away. I looked closer. Yes, that's it! Itachi-sensei's hitai-ate is near Sasuke, smudged with blood and grime. I lay Itachi-sensei on the ground and crawl to it. As I grasp it, I can't help but look up at his younger brother. He is about my age, around 18, and I can definitely see their relation. _Sasuke is quite handsome… oh no, what am I thinking! I love Itachi-sen… NANI!_

I mentally kick myself as I feel the heat rising in my cheeks. Stupid, stupid, stupid! He's your sensei! I think, as I crawl back to Itachi-sensei with his hitai-ate. He is already unconscious. I pull him back onto my lap, and I lift his head up and tie his headband into place. As I tie the knot, I try to think of what to do about his wounds. I only have a little chakra left, so I can't do much- not without passing out anyway. But for Itachi-sensei's sake, I have to try. At least I might prove that I can heal, if nothing else. I grit my teeth and place my hands over his chest, my pastel-green chakra focused on healing him and stopping the blood.

"SAKURA-CHAN WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" My head snaps up to see Naruto running towards me at top speed. I glare.

"Look, Naruto-dobe," I say coldly. "Itachi-sensei is hurt! I have to help him, or he might die!" He looks at me in disbelief.

"Sakura-chan, just take him to our hospital," he said. I snort derisively.

"Why? So we can be arrested as soon as he recovers?" He gives me an exasperated sigh, then closes his eyes and puts two fingers to his forehead.

"I won't let them arrest you. Or Itachi, for that matter. As the Hokage, I can command them to release you if they try anything. The ANBU won't be happy, but I think I can work something out for you three to have enough time to recuperate and leave. You have to trust me, though." He opens his eyes and looks at me. I stay silent for a while. I look at him and sigh.

"Alright, but Itachi-sensei won't be happy… I'll help with your friends though, if they are who you say they are… my teammates and former friends, but I still don't buy it. We'll get Itachi-sensei and Kisame-sensei last, I don't want to leave them alone with ANBU, even if they have your orders not to arrest him." I lift Itachi-sensei's body and lay him on the ground, then follow Naruto to the others.

I stare in disbelief that I had caused so much blood to spill. The battlefield is dyed red with blood; it is all over the ground, the rocks and the trees. Naruto goes to Hinata, but I run after him.

"Naruto, with all due respect, I would like to take Hinata," I say, looking up at him. I feel much kinder now that the bloodlust has left me, and I will even help my enemies if it will help me to find out who I was before I met the two Akatsuki that had rescued me three years ago. Naruto gives me a strange look, then backs away from Hinata's still form and turns to help Tsunade and Jiraiya.

I crouch next to the dead girl. Her still form seems so peaceful… I realize that she must have been the type of girl that everyone could like. Then I notice something poking out of her gray vest. I reach into the inner pocket of the vest and grasp something tiny and a little sharp, attached to a string of sorts. As I pull it out, I examine it closer, scrutinizing the miniscule figure hanging in front of my face. It is a tiny sakura blossom, pink crystal I think, with a scarlet red ribbon strung through the top petal. I place it in my palm and turn it over so the flat underside of blossom faces upward. As I look closer, I notice that there is a tiny inscription, barely readable, carved into the crystal. What does this mean? _'To H. H., my new friend, from H.S.'? What the hell? Hmmm…._ Hinata's eyes were white when we battled, I remember. _White eyes… what did Itachi-sensei say about that? Byakko…. White….. Byakko-gan…? Byakugan! That was it! Byakugan belonged to… um… the Hyuuga clan of Konoha! So, 'To Hyuuga Hinata, my new friend, from H.S?' Okay, so who was H.S?_

"Naruto, come here. What is this?" I call over to him, keeping my eyes on the tiny pendant. "Eh?" He comes over and looks into my hand. "Who is H.S.?" I ask him, lifting my head to look at his face. His expression suddenly turns to shock. "That's you, Sakura-chan! Don't tell me you've forgotten your name too?" I look at his wide-eyed. Open-mouthed expression. "My name? I'm Sakura, that's all I need to know." He raises his eyes to my face. "Sakura-chan.. your family name is Haruno, don't you remember?" I screw my face up in concentration. Yes, the name does ring a bell… Haruno…

A sudden flash of white light came to my eyes. I gasp at the brightness of it, and then a horrible pain goes through my head, making it throb intensely. "AAAAGGHH!" I grasp my head in desperation, trying to make the pain go away. I can hear Naruto, faintly, calling my name….

"My… my head… it's... it's splitting….!" My head hurts like never before, and I feel as if my head is going to burst. Suddenly the world freezes and my head stops hurting. A picture starts forming in my mind's eye…. A girl….

Sekhimet: -wakes up- Yay! Cliffie! Aren't they evil! Muahahahaha. Just take a wild guess what the next chapter is going to be. Hn, I wonder. Yes, and when that half of the chapter is done, there will be some slight NARUSAKU! WHOOO! Until then, sayonara!


	6. Realization Part II

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: R for violence, sexual implications, and strong language in later chapters.

Category: Romance/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku and ItaSaku

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto! Oh and this chappie is Sakura's memories of course, in reverse order. So basically, the later in her life it happened, the sooner it appears. Get it? Goody goody gumdrops. 

Chapter Six: Realization Part II

: Normal POV:

_"Ja ne! Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji-kun, Neji-kun, Kiba-kun, Hinata, TenTen, Lee-san, Jiraiya, Tsunade-sama, Naruto, Sasuke, Kakashi-senseeeeeeiii!" Sakura waved goodbye to her teammates and her friends as she walked into the forest. It was the beginning of her mission and she was amped, ready to go. Naruto was jumping up and down, waving his hands wildly. "Sayonara, Sakura-chaaaaaaaan! Get home soon!" Kakashi was smiling, his chest swelled with pride as he waved goodbye. "Go get him, Sakura! Make us proud!" Sasuke was just standing there, his hands shoved in his pockets, scowling as he looked in another direction entirely. Sakura frowned. "So Sasuke is still mad at me…" she whispered to herself as she walked away, amid the loud goodbyes from the others._

_Sasuke looked at Sakura coldly. "And why did you not tell us about this mission sooner?" he asked, his icy gaze glaring at her defiant emerald eyes. "Because… well, I'm not allowed to let on about my missions, you should know that as well as anyone Sasuke." "But we're your teammates! You could at least tell us!" Sasuke raised his voice slightly, and Sakura backed away. "Sa-sasuke, please, I wasn't trying to do anything wrong…" Naruto stepped up and glared at Sasuke. "Sasuke, you ass, you could at least understand that she means well!" Sasuke glared back at Naruto. "Dobe, this is none of your business." Naruto lowered his voice to a growl. "It is as much my business as it is yours, Sasuke. She is my teammate too, and I know you care about her as much as I do." Sasuke snorted. "What makes you think I care about her? We were always saving her ass back when we were Genins, and I think she is still just a weak, delicate little girl who doesn't know which way is up! I just think we should be there to save her ass again!" Sakura strode forward and stood next to Naruto to look up at Sasuke. "I. Am not. A little girl. Do NOT think I need you to always be there to save me, because I am more than capable of taking care of myself." Naruto backed away from Sasuke and Sakura, letting the two argue. He simply decided to watch and see who won._

_Sasuke glared down at Sakura. "And I say you are still a child who needs to be taken care of by her parents and friends. You are not capable of taking on this one. You might have proven yourself to be a powerful hunter-nin, but against this enemy, you cannot win. It is my duty and mine alone to kill him, so back out of the mission before you get killed and we have to clean up the mess." Sakura looked at him, and her eyes narrowed, "I am more than capable of taking him on, and I will complete this mission on my own, without your help." "Sakura, you will be killed! He has no heart, and he has proven that to me time and time again!" "If you think that, then I am closer to killing him than you think!" Sakura shouted, her fists clenched so tightly that her nails dug into her palms and her hands began to bleed. Sasuke's eyes flared to the red Sharingan. "You will never beat him. Not without me! And I told you I will beat him on my own!" "Not if you keep holding yourself back, Sasuke! This is my mission, I knew it was a mistake to tell you!" Sakura's blood dripped from her hands and formed little puddles around her feet. "I only want you to be happy, Sasuke, I always have! And all you ever did was ignore me and push me away! I only wanted you to notice me, and I trained to become a ninja because of that! You wanted power, and I tried to help you, but you just acted like I was holding you back. If it makes you happy, Sasuke, then I will make sure that I don't return to hold you back any longer!"_

_Sasuke's hand flew so fast that neither Naruto nor Sakura noticed it. Sakura was not even looking, but her eyes widened in shock when it hit her face. Sasuke's hand stayed stiffly on the other side of Sakura's face, and his Sharingan eyes glared at her from above his arm._

_"Don't EVER let me hear you suggest that again. And I will not tell you again, this is a personal matter so stay the hell out of it." And with that he disappeared in a puff of smoke. Sakura dropped to her knees and Naruto ran to her._

_"I should have known… Sasuke never cared about me, only his stupid revenge… but it's my mission to kill that one, so I must kill him. Sasuke hates me already, so what does it matter that he hates me more when I am done?"_

_"Ne, Sakura-chan, what was it you wanted to give me?" Hinata lay on her stomach on the floor, her head resting in her hands with her elbows on the ground. Ino sat on the bed, glancing up from her teen magazine to look interestedly at Hinata and Sakura, who sat up and started digging in her dresser. "Ah, here it is!" Sakura pulled out a tiny pendant, a sakura blossom carved out of pink crystal, hanging from a scarlet ribbon. Ino gasped. "Sakura, isn't that..?" Sakura looked at Ino. "No, Ino-chan, it's a different ribbon. The one you gave me is tied around my Ino plushie, remember?" Ino giggled. "It doesn't look a thing like me!" she exclaimed, and threw a pillow at Sakura. Sakura giggled and threw it back at her friend. "It does too, Ino pig-chan!" "Does not!" Ino threw the pillow, trying to hit Sakura, but it hit Hinata instead. Hinata grinned evilly, and started battering both of them with her own pillow. Sakura stood up with a pillow in her hands._

_"PILLOWFIIIIGHT!"_

_As the three girls giggled and laughed, their pillows burst and feathers flew everywhere. Laughing, they danced around and let the feathers cover them._

_When the fighting subsided, the three lay, panting, on the floor. Hinata looked over at Sakura, curiously. "So, what was it?" Sakura scanned the floor for the pendant. "Here it is!" She held it up for Hinata to see. "Read the back." Hinata took the pendant from Sakura and turned it over. "'To H.H., my new friend, from H.S." She read the inscription aloud, then looked up at Sakura, beaming. "Oh, Sakura, I love it!" She grabbed her friend up in a tight hug, and Sakura hugged her back. "I'm glad you like it, Hinata-chan!"_

_Hinata yawned then. "I think we should be getting to sleep now, what about you?" Ino shook her head, then glanced at Sakura, who was struggling with the snake someone had put in her bed, trying to keep it from going down her shirt. She whispered something to Hinata, who whispered something back to her. Ino sighed, and stood up. "Sakura… do you…." she broke her sentence off as Sakura shrieked, and the snake went down her pants. "Do you want a little help with that?" Ino made a leap and yanked down Sakura's pants, and grabbed the snake that lay in there. Sakura grabbed the snake from Ino and flung it out the open window._

_Sakura stood there panting, her face bright red, as the other two girls stared at her. Suddenly they heard a loud hissing and a man's shriek coming from the womens' bath. The three girls burst out laughing, as they realized who the snake had landed on. "Baka Naruto!" Sakura managed to get out, before they heard yet another scream, and renewed their laughter. "S-sounds like Naruto and Jiraiya were at it again…!" Ino said through her fit of giggles._

: Back to reality:

Sakura lay on the ground, curled up with her hands clenching her head. Naruto shook her vigorously, trying to revive her still form. "Sakura-chan! What's wrong? Wake up, please! Sakura-chaaaaan!" Sakura slowly loosened her grip on her head and opened her eyes. "Na.. Naru…to?" She looked up at him, her sight slowly coming into focus. His face showed that he was concerned, and scared. She looked on the ground and saw Hinata laying there, completely still and covered in blood. "Hi…nata..? No.. I'm dreaming! I didn't kill Hinata… did I?" She leaned over, her head nearly touching Hinata's forehead, and she began to cry. "I didn't… no… Hinata…. not this… anything but this…" She stroked Hinata's black hair and brushed it from her forehead. Her calm, serene face gave off a sort of peaceful feeling that soothed Sakura and allowed her to control her sobs. "Hinata…" she moaned in despair. "Forgive me…"

Naruto kneeled down beside Sakura placed his hand on hers. "She already has, Sakura-chan. She told me that she didn't want me to be angry with you, either, so I suppose she only wanted the others to do the same." He gave her a feeble grin to cheer her up. "Come on. We need to take care of the others, we can get maybe two at a time and take them to the hospital." He reached over and brushed off one of her tears from her face, and she looked at him in surprise. "Naruto…" She smiled a little and closed her eyes.

Sakura took hold of Hinata's arm and pulled her over her shoulder. "I'll take her first, then I'll come back. She needs to be taken to the hospital anyways so Neji-kun knows what happened." With that she disappeared in a puff of smoke. Naruto let out a sigh.

"Hinata, you know what? I don't think she's really changed a bit."


	7. The Hospital

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: R for violence, sexual implications, and strong language in later chapters.

Category: Romance/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku and ItaSaku (I decided to drop NaruSaku, it's just a little freaky for this story)

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto! Just Sasuke and Itachi…. Yummy…. Oh yeah, and Inner Sakura is back! Woohoo! XD

_Italics_: thoughts

_Inner Sakura's speech_

I'm pretty sure you know the rest….

Chapter Seven: The Hospital

:Sakura's POV:

This hospital is so familiar to me… I know everyone in here, I remember where everything is, yet it all seems so distant and alien now. Naruto and I brought in Kakashi, Jiraiya, Tsunade and Kisame after I brought Hinata, and right now we have the last two casualties. Itachi-sensei (yes, I still call him that) is being carried by Naruto at the moment, and I am carrying Sasuke. The whole hospital has been bowing to Naruto, of course, now that he is Hokage. But I can still feel that when we have passed them, their hatred is being directed towards me, and I can hear them muttering. So, I think, this is what Naruto went through most of his life. Now wonder he was so protective of us. We were the only ones that truly accepted and loved him. As the nurse directs us to the next open room, I see the others that I have injured. When we pass by Hinata's room, I glance in, and I freeze at what I see. The cold, white eyes of the Byakugan glare at me, burning into my mind's eye. They are hypnotizing me, keeping me in place, scorching me with their coldness. I wrench my gaze away and continue down the hall and into the empty room. Itachi-sensei is already laid down in a bed, so I carefully lift Sasuke and place him on his bed, and cover him up. Wait a minute. I look around the room. This is where I waited for Sasuke to wake up, after he was brought back from the Otonin. I sigh. Too many lonely memories linger here, and I cannot bear it. I go out into the hall and slump against the wall. I can't take this anymore. All the people I've injured so badly, all the hatred I feel around me. I need someone- anyone- to be here with me now, to help me get it all out, to comfort me. I feel so wretched, but I can't seem to cry or anything, I can't even wimper, let alone say anything. I feel so miserable and exhausted, so I fall asleep.

Suddenly, I feel a rough, calloused hand grab my wrist and yank me up. I cry out in pain, as a loud crunch echoes through the empty hall. The hospital is dark and void of life, save the patients, myself, and whoever woke me up. The stranger punches my stomach so that I keel over and begin to fall. Their knee swiftly comes up and catches me in the chest, and I let out a gurgled cry as blood flies out of my mouth, drowning out the sound of another crunch. I stagger back, clutching my chest. I can tell that a few of my ribs are now broken, but to what extent I have no idea. I don't know if they broke anything else either. _Who is this person? Why the hell are they doing this?_ _You know perfectly well why, idiot!_ I scowl. _Shut up_.

I look up to see my assailant, only to feel their hand ram up against my throat. They lift me up so that my feet dangle, and they keep choking me. _I can't breathe… someone please… help…_ I can't move at all, all control over my body has gone.

"What's wrong, Haruno? I thought you were strong. Why don't you fight me?"

_I know that voice…_

"If you were strong enough to defeat two of the three Sennin by yourself, not to mention Kakashi and Hinata-sama, you should be able to at least fight back!"

_Hinata-sama?_

"N… Neji-kun …" I manage to choke out. Neji snarls. "Don't call me that!" He lifts me off the wall and throws me down the hall so that I slam into the wall and slide down so that I am flat on my back. I can't move, I can't even breathe…

"Sakura! What's going on!"

_What the hell…?_

"Asshole!" I look up as I hear the woman's shout, to see a dark shape rush at Neji and punch him in the face, as another voice, a man's, echoes through the hall.

"Kage Mane no Jutsu!" Neji's body freezes in place, and I hear a snicker behind him. "Here, I'll let you see me." Neji snarls as his head moves to look behind him. "Now then… I think you should get the hell out!" shouts the woman's voice. "Ninpou! Shinranshin no Jutsu!" The dark figure that had punched him suddenly froxe in its place, and Neji begins to walk towards the exit.

_Kage Mane…? Shinranshin? Wait a minute…_

I hear the door click behind Neji as he walks out, and I can hear him beginning to run towards the forest. Suddenly, a bright bluish light comes through the wall and illuminates the hallway. A dark-haired man is standing next to a blonde woman, who is hunched over on the floor. Her blonde ponytail swishes back and forth as the light enters her body.

_Her chakra… It's not weak, but it's not strong either…_

"Ugh." The woman stands up, with a little help from the man, and turns to face me. "Sakura? Are you alright?" She crouches in front of me and looks at my face.

"Shikamaru? Ino-chan?" I look at her soft features, her light blue eyes and pale blonde hair, and her ivory skin. Ino smiles at me, a cute girlish smile, and I suddenly feel ashamed of myself. My long, tousled braid, my slightly tanned skin, and my scarred body. But I feel most ashamed when her eyes travel to my ring, and the Akatsuki insignia upon it. I have betrayed her and my friends, and gone over to the enemy's side. I can only hope for their forgiveness.

Ino reaches over and tries to move my arm, the one where Neji crushed the bones, which was resting on my chest. I grit my teeth and snarl a little, and Ino draws back.

"Don't touch me… not now. Wait until I can't keep my eyes open… it hurts too much…" I manage to say, my voice hoarse because he had nearly crushed my windpipe. Ino cast a worried glance at me, then at Shikamaru. He nodded, and he placed a hand on my shoulder.

_**"Nemuri…"**_

Sekhimet: This was a painful chapter to think up. Sakura's gotta be hurtin' right about now. But anyway, Neji isn't gone yet! And Sakura will have to face him sooner or later. And what about the others?


	8. Revenge

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: R for violence, sexual implications and strong language in later chapters

Category: Romace/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku, ItaSaku

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, blah blah blah. I pity you people who have to make sure we have these things, so my sympathies go out to you.

Chapter Eight: Revenge

Sakura opened her eyes to find herself in a hospital bed, with many itchy bandages wrapped about her. Sunlight was streaming in, and she groaned as it stung her eyes. Naruto's head shot up as he heard her.

"Hey guys! She's awake!"

Suddenly, Sakura found herself surrounded by her friends, all of them asking her how she felt at the time, what happened, who did it. Apparently Ino hadn't given them very much information at all, and Sakura couldn't really answer to the barrage of questions that was directed at her, until Sasuke held up his hand for silence.

"Sakura," he said, looking straight at her face. "Did Neji say anything to you? Or did he just attack?" There were suddenly little whispers of "Neji…?" here and there.

Sakura frowned. "He said he thought I was strong, since I had been able to defeat Hinata-chan and Kakashi-sensei. And he asked why I wasn't fighting back- but that was all, really."

"And why didn't you fight back?" Itachi's voice carried over from the corner, and his Sharingan eyes stared coldly at Sakura. The others in the room took the hint and left quickly, save Naruto and Sasuke. Sakura shrunk away from Itachi's icy glare.

"I-I was caught off guard, I fell asleep in the hall… he grabbed my wrist, that's what woke me up…" Itachi stood up and strode over to where Sakura lay, then roughly grabbed her wrist and examined it. "It looks just fine to me- nothing serious, the wrist should be able to heal on its own. So what exactly happened? That blonde wench only told the three of us that she found you with Neji advancing and ready to strike again." Sakura hung her head as she felt Naruto and Sasuke's intense, questioning stares. Sakura attempted to take a deep breath, only to find that it caused incredible pain to shoot through her chest. She winced slightly, gritting her teeth, and immediately controlled her breathing.

"I just fell asleep, and he yanked me up by my wrist and broke it…. he punched my stomach and broke a few ribs, and then he choked me… and he asked why I wasn't fighting back, if I was strong enough to beat Old Man Jiraiya and Tsunade-sama, and Hinata. I tried to talk to him, but he threw me against the wall… and then Ino-chan and Shikamaru came and got rid of him."

Sakura looked up to see Sasuke and Naruto shaking with rage, Sasuke's bright red Sharingan flared up, Naruto's eyes likewise had turned red. Itachi remained silent and still, but Sakura noticed his eyes were narrowed and he was in deep thought.

"Sakura…. I think that Hyuuga bastard deserves to be taught a lesson, don't you think so?" Naruto's voice shook slightly as he spoke, his fists clenched so tightly that Sakura could see the blood flowing from his hands as his nails dug into the flesh. Sasuke's face was twisted into a snarl.

"You know Naruto, I think you're right for once." Sakura opened her mouth to speak to them, but nothing came out.

"Heh.. Sasuke, whaddya say we go knock some sense into him the old-fashioned way?"Naruto grinned rather creepily, showing his elongated canines. Sakura's eyes widened a bit.

"N-Naruto, you're Hokage, can't you just arrest him or something?"Sakura managed to say, receiving smirks from both Sasuke and Naruto.

"Now now Sakura-chan, where would the fun be in that?"Naruto strode over to the window and and opened it roughly, leaping outside. Sasuke followed suit, glancing at Sakura with a look she didn't quite grasp before he leapt out after Naruto. Sakura grit her teeth and sat up quickly, letting out a sharp yelp as Itachi grabbed her and pushed her back down onto the bed.

"Don't even think about it. Besides, I'll make sure they don't get to him." Sakura smiled a bit, sighing slightly as she relaxed her body and closed her eyes. Itachi straightened up, grabbing his Akatsuki cloak and hastily putting it on as he made his way to the door. Glancing back at Sakura, he smirked slightly and made his way through the halls of the hospital. As he reached the main lobby, he got many frightened looks from the women there, but he ignored them and walked out the door.

Naruto and Sasuke wouldn't make it to Neji. Itachi wouldn't let them, because Sakura didn't want them to. However, he thought as he grinned darkly, there wouldn't be much of Neji left for them to get to.

He would make sure of that.


	9. Fight and Flight

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: R for violence, sexual implications and strong language in later chapters

Category: Romace/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku, ItaSaku

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Meow.

Chapter Nine: Fight and Flight

Neji's eyes narrowed as he heard a loud whistle, signaling that Tenten had successfully completed her task. He smirked as the kunoichi landed in front of him, the blue chakra around her hands fading from sight.

"Neji-kun, I'm finished. Nobody noticed me, and that little bitch won't be moving anytime soon."Tenten smiled darkly, her hair casting eerie shadows over her face in the late afternoon sun. Neji's smirk faded slightly as he looked up at the sky, lost in thought.

"Tenten… go home and check on Natsume. I'll be there shortly." Tenten nodded and disappeared in a puff of smoke. Neji turned around and glared at the shadows being cast by the setting sun.

"What do you want, Uchiha?" Itachi's dark figure emerged from the shadows, the wind blowing his bangs across his left eye, making the Sharingan user look much darker and more sinister. His face twisted into a snarl, letting loose a small growl.

"Why the hell did you attack my blossom?" Neji's eyes narrowed.

"Answer my question first." Itachi glared dangerously at the Byakugan master.

"I'm here to avenge Sakura. Now tell me, why did you attack her!" Neji grinned.

"She was just asking for it, what with the way she murdered Hinata-sama… and why are you so concerned anyway?"

"She's my student, do I need any other reason for wanting to protect her?" Itachi rushed forward to cut off Neji's oncoming retort. He feinted like he was going to kick Neji's head, then swiftly brought his fist in an uppercut as Neji ducked. Neji's body went flying backwards into a nearby tree, where he quickly activated his Byakugan and sent several kunai flying in Itachi's direction. Itachi disappeared and reappeared underneath Neji, in the Byakugan's one blind spot. As Neji looked down, Itachi grabbed onto Neji's ankle, closing and re-opening his eyes to reveal his Mangekyou Sharingan, activating his Tsukiyomi jutsu.

"I wonder, Hyuuga….. how much could you take of this?" Itachi's black figure appeared before Neji, who was chained to the bottom of a large pool of water. Neji attempted to use his chakra to explode his shackles, but to no avail. He then tried desperately to fling a shuriken out of the water at Itachi, but it deflected off the water's surface, as if it were ice. Itachi smirked.

"It's no use… I control time, space, everything in this world. For the next forty-eight hours, you will drown repeatedly in this lake, and the fish will eat you slowly as you do so." Neji's shock was unmistakable; he looked down in panic as little fish began to nibble at his flesh.

In the visible world, Neji began to go into convulsions, falling form the branch he was on. Itachi took this opportunity to calmly stride forward and use a kunai to slit his throat. Now the deed was done, and Itachi knew that from here on out things were going to get chaotic.

Immediately, Itachi spun around and ran to the hospital, bursting through the front doors and bolting upstairs, catching the attention of his shark companion that was walking out of the bathroom, his chest wound from Sasuke's sword fully healed. Kisame quickly spun around and followed Itachi, and they both ran down the hall, sharply changing direction to burst into Sakura's room. Nobody else was in there, and Itachi stopped momentarily to scoop the unconscious Sakura into his arms, before leaping out of the window in the same fashion as Naruto and Sasuke had done earlier, paying no attention to Sakura's haywire hospital monitors. The forest was right next to the hospital, which, combined with the setting sun, gave the three running ninja good cover. Itachi spoke quickly to Kisame, explaining to him what had to be done.

"Kisame, the ANBU are going to come after us any moment, I need you to take Sakura back to the hideout and make sure nobody touches her. I'll catch up to you shortly."

"Itachi, what the hell did you do? Why are we running like the hounds of hell are after us?" Itachi snarled, passing Sakura's limp form over to an extremely confused Kisame as they ran.

"Just do it." Itachi stopped abruptly, turning on his heel and taking out his kunai, holding it in a defensive position as seven ANBU leapt in front of him.

Kisame continued to run, through the forest until it ended and he touched down on the sand, straightening up and running farther. Sakura stirred slightly in his arms, and Kisame looked down, concerned. She simply turned her face into his chest, gently taking hold of a handful of his cloak, mumbing something into the cloth.

"Itachi…….."

Kisame's eyes widened in shock, but he quickly realized what was going on and looked back up, a small smile on his face. As he continued to run, he glanced momentarily at the kunoichi in his arms.

"Ah, Itachi, it looks like you have a secret admirer….." Kisame's mouth turned upwards in the slightest of smiles, as his figure disappeared into the darkening night sky.


	10. Black as Blood

Akatsuki no Sakura

Rating: R for violence, sexual implications and strong language in later chapters

Category: Romace/Angst/Action

Pairings: SasuSaku, ItaSaku

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Yeesh.

Chapter Ten: Black as Blood

--------

Around midnight, Kisame decided that enough was enough. He found a tiny oasis, with a fair amount of greenery and a few boulders, and of course a miniature lake of water, deep enough to allow someone to bathe in it without exposing too much skin. Kisame set Sakura down on the soft moss before rushing to the water and diving in. The cool water revitalized the shark-nin's energy, his dried skin soaking in the moisture. He let himself float there for a bit, closing his eyes and relaxing for a few minutes.

When he got out, his cloak clung to his skin, and his hair was soaking wet. He took out his leather canteen, filling it with water before moving to sit next to Sakura. Strangely, she was still unconscious, but Kisame decided it was simply because she was exhausted. He lifted her head, trying to get her to drink from the canteen, but she wouldn't swallow. Kisame frowned, his eyes narrowing. He tried to give her water again, but gave up after his third try. Setting her down, he gathered a large stack of the green grass and ripped a branch free from one of the two trees there. Breaking the branch up into chunks, he set the grass on top and sighed. Itachi would be useful here, as Kisame didn't know any fire-type jutsus. Those were Itachi's specialty. However, he did know how to make sparks with rocks…..

After the fire had started, Kisame rested with his back to a nearby boulder, falling asleep quickly. Itachi would get there soon, he figured. He didn't have to worry about him, and Sakura was right next to him, he would wake up if anyone tried to grab her.

Several miles away, Itachi limped out of the forest, his foot coming down on soft sand. Gritting his teeth, he lifted his head to scan the horizon. The sky was the color of pitch, the crescent moon overhead offering little light. The sand was a sea of dark blue, and as he looked down the blood that dripped down from his leg looked black as it landed on the sand. He grunted and began limping in the direction that he could sense Sakura's faint chakra emanating from. It would be a long walk.

---------

"WHADDAYA MEAN, NOT HERE!" Naruto slammed his fist on the reception counter at the hospital, fuming at the poor nurse. He had walked into Sakura's room only to find her bed empty, with the machines out of whack and the IV tubes with no patient attached. The nurse shrunk away from the furious Hokage, trembling terribly.

"I-I'm sorry, Hokage-sama, but there was no patient there when the nurse checked a half an hour ago….." Naruto stormed outside, slamming the huge doors of the hospital as he went. Naruto paced around the perimeter of the hospital, until he let out a roar of frustration, his blue eyes changing to their demonic red. As he spun around and punched the wall of the east side of the hospital, several ANBU appeared next to him, then suddenly backed away slightly at his glare.

"H-Hokage-sama, we just found… you'd better follow us…" Naruto's eyes narrowed. He nodded and followed the ANBU through the dark town, glowering and muttering darkly. They stopped at a dark spot behind a building, and Naruto's eyes narrowed.

"I'm looking for...what, exactly?" The ANBU sighed and pointed at the base of one of the trees. Naruto's blood went cold as he recognized the limp form of Hyuuga Neji, eyes half-closed and sallow.

"You, you an you! Get him into the emergency room, now! And bring me Uchiha Sasuke!" The ANBU nodded and disappeared, the last ANBU grabbing Neji and hoisting him over his shoulders and disappearing. Moments later, Sasuke ran to Naruto, his eyes bright red.

"What's going on? Naruto, it's the middle of the goddamn night... This better be good." Naruto glared at him and snarled.

"Neji's been attacked." Sasuke sneered at him.

"And I should care because...?"

"Because Sakura-chan went missing at the same time." Sasuke's eyes widened and he grabbed Naruto by the collar and yanked him close.

"You had better be joking. Dammit, I knew we should have posted ANBU outside of her room..." Sasuke let go of Naruto and turned away, scowling.

"We have to go after her."

----------

Sakura rolled over onto her side, slinging her arm over something warm.

"Itachi-sensei..." She smiled in her sleep and cuddled closer to the warmth. She giggled and feverishly grabbed at the cloth there.

Meanwhile, Kisame felt something sling over him and his eyes snapped open. He relaxed a bit as he heard the kunoichi's voice, but suddenly realized what was happening and he paled. _Itachi's gonna murder me if he sees this..._

Suddenly, a dark figure stumbled into the camp and Kisame had to fight to stop from squeaking in fear. _Oh CRAP!_

Itachi staggered over to the two figures; he was too exhausted to pay any attention to them and he dropped to his knees, landing face-down in the sand. Sakura groaned and rolled onto her other side, releasing Kisame and grabbing Itachi at the same time. Itachi managed to roll onto his side, and his eyes widened as his face met with hers, only inches away.

_Crap... how am I gonna get out of this? _

----------

Sekhimet: I'm so so so sorry for not updating! I completely forgot... I've been busy roleplaying, the fic completely slipped my mind! -bows- -gets hit by a flying hammer- OW... Next chapter: The morning after! Or something like it.


	11. Author Notes Final Words

AN: I'm sorry I haven't updated in so long! I just got done with a six-month grounding a little while ago. I'm very very sorry to say, but I won't be finishing this story. Looking back on it, I realized just how badly I wrote it. ItaSaku fans, forgive me, but don't worry because I'm writing another, much more believable ItaSaku story!

Again, I'm sorry, I apologize to all of my readers. bows If you still want to find out what happens, well, I MIGHT finish the story. But I very much doubt it... ;;


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